Words matter

I remember hearing at Christmas time that the angels came to the shepherds and said, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men.” And then I got to sing that phrase over and over again in Handel’s Messiah (Good will too-oo-ooward men, too-ward men) and I couldn’t help but wonder, what about women? Do I get to be part of that peace? I know there are some who would say of course, because in the Bible, the word “men” implies women as well. But does it?

Let’s be honest. The Bible was written in a time when women were seen as the property of men, when women often went unnamed (the Levite’s concubine, Peter’s mother-in-law, two harlot mothers), when women could be seen as an acceptable sacrifice (Judges 11). So it stands to reason that many things were not written with the intent to include women. Why would it need to be?

When we use language that excludes, it becomes really easy to see another as less than human. When we put labels on people and they don’t quite fit in the box that label creates, it is easy to dimiss them. As a person of faith, I am called to be better than that. I am called to draw the circle wide. Following in the way of Jesus, I am called to see the humanity in the very ones the world despises.

I read a horrific story of how a transgender girl in Oklahoma was threatened and maligned by the parents of other students in her school. In addition to making physical threats of violence against her, some parents began calling her “it.” Seeing a person as “it” makes it really easy to pretend that person doesn’t have the same rights as others, that they don’t have the right to go to school safely or to even exist, to turn threats of violence into actual acts of violence. The words we use matter.

I was taught starting in high school to use inclusive language in my writing. To not assume that man included woman, that he included she. I was taught to use words like “humankind” and “humanity” and that felt right. It was easy to see I, as a woman, was included in humanity. I extended the same practice in my work as a clergyperson, celebrating that women have equal standing with men in the eyes of God, that women can serve as elders and deacons, that women can serve at the communion table. But there was more for me to learn.

In church, we use language like brothers and sisters all the time. Then someone pointed out to me that “brothers and sisters” does not include those in our communities of faith who arenonbinary. And so we are in the process of adjusting the words we use to be more inclusive. Because we don’t want to be a stumbling block for any who are seeking the love of God, for any of our companions or siblings who journey on the way.

It is my hope and prayer that we can live in a world where more people can know the love of God, where the table is widened and more chairs can be set to include those who have been excluded in the past, where the words we use heal instead of harm.

Rev. Emily Bowen-Marler is the Associate Minister of Brentwood Christian Church and a member of the Springfield Area Coalition for Responsibility, Equity, Dignity (redSGF.org))